Matthias I of Austria

Matthias I (24 February 1557-20 March 1619) was the Imperial Archduke of Austria from 1608 to 1619, King of Bohemia from 1611 to 1619, and Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from 1612 to 1619. He succeeded Maximilian II of Austria and preceded Ferdinand II of Austria.

Biography
Matthias was the son of Maximilian II of Austria and Maria of Spain, and was a member of the House of Habsburg. He was the nephew of King Felipe II of Spain, and the cousin of future King Felipe III of Spain. From 1578 to 1581 he was appointed Governor-General of the Netherlands by the rebellious province, setting down the rules for religious peace and forming the Union of Utrecht in 1579.

In 1583, he was made Governor of Austria and in 1606 crushed a rebellion by Hungarian Protestants, but was unable to prevent a takeover of Maximilian III of Austria, the Archduke, in 1618 during the Bohemian rebellion that started the Thirty Years War. Matthias, gravely ill, was succeeded by Archduke Ferdinand II.